Over the past two decades, ultra-high vacuum (UHV) scanning tunneling
microscopy (STM) and single particle laser spectroscopy have made great
strides in understanding and controlling nanoscale systems in
complementary ways. While UHV STM and associated surface preparation
techniques have demonstrated atomic-scale control over nanoscale
structures and the ability to modify and measure their associated
electronic and magnetic properties, laser spectroscopy techniques have
been used to study (and manipulate) photophysics, quantum coherence,
plasmonic and even magnetic properties on ultrafast time scales and with
ultrahigh spectral resolution. As these optical interactions hinge on
the structure and local environment of these nanoscale systems, it is
critically important to develop experimental approaches which can
correlate optical properties with atomic-scale structure. I will
describe our efforts to combine UHV STM and single particle laser
spectroscopy to address this challenge, and I will discuss nanoscale
systems which are under investigation in our lab.